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"I won't give you a literal translation of fourth-century Latin. Too stiff and formal. Instead, I'll try and relate the text in English vernacular. The first entry is under the Julian calendar date of April
, A.D. 391. The report begins:
"I, Cuccius Rufinus, captain of the Serapes, in the em ploy of Nicias, Greek shipping merchant of the port city Of RhOdeS, have agreed to transport a cargo for Junius Venator of Alexandria. The voyage is said to be long and arduous, and Venator will not disclose our destination.
My daughter, Hypatia, sailed with me this trip and her mother will be very concerned at our lengthy separation.
But Venator is paying twenty times the usual rate, a good fortune that will greatly benefit Nicias as well as myself and the crew.
"The cargo was put on board at night under heavy guard, and quite mysteriously, as I was ordered to remain at the docks with my crew during the loading. Four sol diers under the command of the centurion Dominus Se verus have been commanded to stay on the ship and sail with us.
"I do not like the look of it, but Venator has paid me for the voyage in full, and I cannot go back on my con tract.
"An honest man," said Pitt. "Hard to believe he didn't discover the nature of his cargo."
"He comes to that later. The next few lines are a log of the voyage. He also makes mention of his ship's namesake. I'll skip to where they make their first port.
our god Serapes for providing us with a smooth and fast passage of fourteen days to Carthago Nova where we rested for five days and took on four times our normal supply of provisions. Here we joined Junius Venator's other ships. Most are over two hundred tons burden, some close to three hundred. We total sixteen with Vena tor's flagship. Our sturdy Serapes is the smallest vessel in the fleet."
"A fleet!" Lily cried. Her eyes gleamed, her whole body taut. "They did save the collection."
Redfem nodded delightedly. "A damned good chunk of it anyway.
Two-to-three-hundred-ton-ships were representative of large merchantmen of that era. allowing for two ships to carry men and provisions, and taking an average tonnage of two hundred for the other fourteen ships, you have a gross tonnage for the fleet of 2,800 tons. Enough to transport a third of the Library's books and a fair share of the museum's art treasures."
Pitt called for a break. He went to the galley counter and brought back two cups of coffee. He set one in front of Lily and returned for a plate of doughnuts. He remained standing. He thought and concentrated better on his feet.
"So far the great Library snatch is theory," he said. "I've heard nothing that proves the goods were actually spirited away."
"Rufinus nails it down further on," said Redfem. "The description of the Serapis's cargo comes near the end of the log."
Pitt gave the marine archaeologist an impatient look and sat back, waiting.
"On the next tablet Rufinus mentions minor repairs to the ship, dockside gossip, and a tourist's eye of Carthago Nova, now Cartagena, Spain.
Oddly, he doesn't express any further uneasiness about the coming voyage. He even failed to note the date the fleet left port. But the really offbeat part is the censorship. Listen to the next paragraph.
"We sailed today toward great sea. The faster ships towing the slower ones. I can write no more. The soldiers are watching. Under strict orders of Junius Venator there can be no record of the voyage."
"Just when we set the straight pieces of the puzzle together," Pitt muttered, "the center section is missing."
"There must be more," Lily insisted. "I know I copied beyond that part of the report."
"You did," acknowledged Redfem, shuffling the pages. "Rufinus takes up the tale eleven months later.
"I am free now to record our cruel voyage without fear of punishment.
Venator and his small army of slaves, Se verus and his legionaries, all the ship's crews, have all been slain by the barbarians and the fleet burned. The Serapes escaped because my fear of Venator made me cautious.
"I learned the source and contents of the fleet's cargo and know its hiding place in the hills. Secrets such as these must be kept from mortal men. I suspected Venator and Severus meant to murder all but a few of their trusted soldiers and the crew of one ship to insure their return home.
"I feared for the life of my daughter so I armed my crew and ordered them to remain close to the ship so we could cast off at the first sign of treachery. But the barbarians struck first, slaughtering Venator's slaves and Se verus's legion. Our guards died in the battle, and we cut the lines and heaved our ship from the beach. Venator tried to save himself by running into the water. He shouted for rescue. I could not risk the lives of Hypatia and the crew to save him and refused to Turn back. To do so against the current would have been suicidal."
Redfem paused in the translation before continuing. "At this point Rufinus jumps around and flashes back to the fleet's departure from Cartagena.
"The voyage from Hispania to our destination in the strange land took fifty-eight days. The weather was favorable with winds at our backs.
for this good fortune, Serapis demanded a sacrifice. Two of our crew died from a malady unknown to me."
